1 year and 1 month later
“I’ve noticed your improvement over these couple of months. And you’ve been saying that you feel ready to stop. Well, I agree with you, you’ve made so much progress. I've spoken to your father and he said that on your last day of therapy I should get your opinion on how much your feelings has changed about certain people now. Do you mind?”
I sat up on the whirl chair and placed my arms on the armrest. “Of cause not.”
“And he said that we should have it all on camera because he wants to watch it. Is that okay with you?”
I shrugged. “Why not?”
Lauren set the camera up on the little round table next to her sofa and positioned it properly. I was sitting opposite her. Her office was spacious and the furniture always looked spotless. Her carpet, not a speck, always looked vacuumed. Her vases and coffee table sparkled, never a speck of dust. Even her fake plants were always shining and looked lively, as if they were watered every morning. The temperature in her room was always cool, never too warm, never too cold. And her? She was like a reporter from TV, always looked neat and put together.
“Can we start?” She asked me, giving me a smile.
I nodded.
“The first person your father wanted to know how much your feelings have changed towards is your mother, Leticia.”
I smiled, seeing my mother’s beautiful face pop up in my mind. Her perfect blonde and curly hair styled up on the top of her head with perfect twirls hanging on the sides of her face, not a strand out of place. Her deep blue eyes glimmering as she smiled. “She has a beautiful heart. She is very sweet and very gentle. She has been very supportive and understanding towards me through this difficult time. Even at times when it was obvious on the faces of others that they were fed up with me, she was always genuine and supportive. I don’t know what I would do without her. So, yeah… I appreciate her so much. I wouldn’t trade her for the world.”
Lauren smiled. Her smile was very professional and she never smiled too much or too little. It always looked genuine and organized. Her neatness sometimes dazzled me, even her hair seemed to have a glow to it. I’ve always imagined that if I had to run my finger down her scalp it would squeak! “And your father, Raphael?” Her voice suddenly brought me back to the room.
“He’s my favorite.” I said, a huge grin stealing over my face. “The alpha. He doesn’t only run our business, he runs the entire city. He has so much influence over everyone else, it’s amazing. It’s not only because he is the richest business man in this city. It’s because dominance is written all over him. When he walks into a room, you immediately feel the power that he walks in with and I’m not talking about those two big body guards who follow him everywhere.”
I laughed, Lauren joined too. We shared a brief laugh. “When he speaks, he speaks with authority. But underneath all that power and authority, my father is a good man, a family man. He loves his wife and children and wants what’s best for us and our company. I think that’s what I love the most about him. He is selfless.”
“And of cause, your younger sister, Alice?”
Alice had my mom’s curly blonde hair and father’s hazel brown eyes. She preferred black hair so she dyed her hair black a couple of years ago. She was lucky enough to have my mom’s natural curly hair whereas I had my dad’s brown straight hair. I’ve always preferred my mom’s blonde hair and that’s why I dyed my hair blonde, but the natural brown color was already coming up at the roots.
“Alice doesn’t really talk much… about things, I mean…” I wasn’t about to expose Alice. My father had warned me about it. It didn’t matter whether Lauren was my therapist or not, what happens in our house stays there. “She’s mostly on her own painting or practicing music. She doesn’t let anyone too close to her. Although she doesn’t directly say it but I always feel like she has an invisible dome around her, keeping everyone out and I think that's perfectly normal for someone her age.”
“You two are only 2 years apart. She’s 21. Seeing that she’s your only sibling, people would expect you two to be closer. However, the media labels her as the black sheep of the Roseburg family. In family interviews she doesn’t really look as together as you four, why is that?”
Now Lauren was also sounding like the nosy reporters. That was one thing they all seemed to want to know, why Alice doesn’t look as happy as we do.
“I don’t think that she’s the black sheep of our family. She just isolates herself because she wants something way different from that which our company has to offer but she has to be supportive towards the family business, of cause. I can understand it. Seeing that I was once a teacher too and my father wasn’t that much happy with it.”
My father wasn’t happy with it at all.
“But now you’re working at your father’s company as a manager of the labour department and helping the empire grow everyday by recruiting the best people. How do you feel about that?”
“Well, you know that I’ve only been working there for a few months now, four months, but with all the help I’m getting from Francis I’m learning everyday and yeah, I’m getting better.”
“Speaking of him, your cousin, Francis. How do you feel about him now?”
“Francis is very helpful, he is more like a brother to me. He is actually very different from the person I first met at the village.” I thought for a while and then nodded. “Yeah, I can say today that he is actually an amazing person. He is funny, sarcastic and just has a bright personality.”
“Speaking about the village, well, the man, how do you feel about him now?”
I crossed my leg over the other and leaned my weight on one side of the armrest. I saw Yoké’s face in my head. I saw him smile at me the first time he did. I saw him take my hand and smile as we walked in the dark. I saw him laugh and throw his head back. I saw him go on his knee, touch my tummy and then look up at me and smile.
“Genesis?” Lauren called.
I shrugged away those memories and shifted in my chair. “Like you tell me all the time, I think of him like a dream I once had and woke up from. All the ‘love’, the moments and whatever happened, that was all part of the dream. But in this real world that I’m living in: Yoké doesn’t exist.”
Lauren looked satisfied. Her hard work finally paid off she must be thinking since the very reason of me beginning therapy was to get over the Yoké issue and well… the baby one too.
“Amongst the people your father wanted me to ask you about. He also mentioned… the baby…”
I got up and walked to the window and stood there for a while. I could feel Lauren standing a little distance away from me.
The road was busy, filled with pedestrians and cars that were rushing to be at some place at a certain time. Across the road, parked, I could see my ride waiting. A black SUV.
“The baby… I will never forget. The 9 months I carried her in my womb was enough for our bond to last a life time. As you know, my baby was my only reason to continue living after I was brought back to Duran. But I was not fortunate enough to hold her in my hands even for a second. I still wonder until today, were her eyes hazel brown like mine or were they black like her father’s?” Tears not given permission escaped my eyes and I wiped them off quickly and then continued with a sturdy voice. “She was the only reason why I agreed to forget about Yoké and everything I knew. She was my only reason to start over. I will never be able to forget about her. I could never. So no, I'm feelings has not changed, concerning her.”
“I totally understand how you feel, and I don’t suppose your father expects you to just forget about her. Especially that she is your first.”
“I suppose so too.” I crossed my arms and leaned against the window pane.
“Last but definitely not least, your fiancée Nathan.”
I smiled. “Nathan, also my father’s best friend’s son.”
Lauren chuckled.
“I know everyone thinks we are only together because our parents are best friends but it’s more than that. He is my strong bone. He is always there for me. He is so patient with me. He is so blameless and will stop at nothing to make me feel better and be better. I appreciate him in my life. A lot.”
“Have you learnt to love him again like before?”
I looked out of the window, and I could see him in the back seat of my ride reading a newspaper.
“What is love to you, Lauren?” I turned to her. She had the camera in her hands.
“Well, love is a mystery…” She responded. “It’s complex. It’s more of a feeling and not something you can really explain. But if you love someone, you develop a sense of closeness to the person. They become your safe space, your light when everything seems dull.”
I remember feeling that way for Yoké but I didn’t think that’s how I feel for Nathan. But that’s not what my father would want to hear after 4 months of therapy. Right?
“I guess I have learnt to love him again.” I told her.
“More than you loved that man?”
I looked into the camera and prepared to lie to my father.
“Yes. More than I loved Yoké.”
I was standing on the pavement and waiting for the speeding cars to give me a chance to cross over. Although I was standing by the pedestrian crossing, the drivers didn’t seem to care. Even the fact that it was -112 degrees today, didn’t trigger their good side. I took out my gloves from my coat pocket and began putting them on.“It sucks right?” I heard a croaky woman’s voice next to me.I looked to see an old granny bent over her tripod, her fuzzy white hair tied at the top of her head in a messy ball.“They are in vehicles but are not even stopping for us. They are in such a rush for nothing, whereas we are actually going to walk all the way to where we are going.” She complained.I gave her a tight smile, a smile clearly telling her that I was glad that she was kind enough to initiate a conversation with me but I was not interested. I continued looking towards the approaching cars.“These drivers should get their license revoked, this is so unfair.” The old lady continued. “Don’t y
I was sitting at my office desk reviewing Danlie Forbes’ resume when a weak ray of sunlight shone over his fake certificates. Today the sun decided to shine a little on our side of the world. Even though you could barely feel it, it felt good to feel a little of warmth from somewhere other than heaters, hot water bottles and electric blankets.Looks like the man did excellent in all three of his interviews. His fake qualifications were all attached. BCom degree in Marketing, Bachelors degree in English and Diploma in business. The fake name he worked under was Harvey Scott. What a weird combination. The managers that had hired him was supposed to run his papers for validation. How could they have not?I heard a soft knock on my door and then Penny stepped in with a few files in her hand. She came to take a seat opposite me. Penny was a skinny and tall 22 year old. She had black hair that was always up in a neat bun. Her fingernails wer
The next morning I was woken up by a kiss on my forehead. I opened my eyes to see Nathan standing there on the side of the bed with a tray in his hands. There were two glasses of juice, pancakes and a few fruits already cut up and arranged beautifully on the tray.“Good morning, beautiful.” Nathan said to me as I sat up on the bed feeling a slight headache. Probably from yesterday’s whiskey.“Good morning.” I smiled up at him. He placed the tray on my lap and came to join me in bed.“Breakfast in bed.” He smiled at me.We placed the tray in the middle between us and I crossed my legs. We began eating.Halfway through the breakfast Nathan burped. “Pardon.”“Ew!” I laughed.“I excused myself.” Nathan said. “Teachers…”I laug
Alice didn’t come home until the next morning around 3am. I jerked awake as I heard her staggering past my room. I came out into the hallway. She was with Dave. She had her arm around his neck and he was helping her walk to her room in the dark. Her hair was sprawled over her face.“Shh” Dave occasionally told her as she kept making noises and saying things.“Is she okay?” I asked Dave, coming to support her on the other side. She reeked of alcohol.“Yeah, just a little drunk.” He responded.“Is this your definition of ‘a little’?” I asked him.“I’m sorry.”“How did you even get in here?” I asked him. “I know dad made it clear that you were not allowed to set foot in here anymore.”“Alice told the guards to let me in.”
"So I just have to get my dad to sign this document and then get it back to you?" I asked the lawyer as he handed me three pages held together by a blue paper clip."Yes." He replied. He did not look happy about this."Thanks." I told him. "Can I get your card? I'll phone you once my dad signs it.""Sure." He said pulling out his wallet from his back pocket.I looked back at Finn. He fixed his shades and then returned his hands behind his back.The lawyer handed me his card."Thanks... Steven." I said reading his name on the little card. "I'll call you soon. Please stay close to your cell."Steven nodded slowly. "Why do you want to drop the charges against him, miss Genesis? Do you know what he did?"I looked at him, then looked towards the door and then at him again not sure how I'd explain myself. "Steven, let's jus
Do you know that moment when you are conscious of doing something wrong but just to see if someone else picked it up you ask them what? This was that moment."Did you read the whole document?" Father asked me.I gave him my sweetest smile, feeling my heart rate settling again, "Yes, sir."He signed his neat curly signature on the empty space and placed the pen on the paper."Thank you." I told him as he turned back to his waiting clients."Sorry about that, it's just some work was stopped because it needed my signature." I heard him say as I turned to leave.I stood by the door and watched them turn back to my dad and nod."You see, that's the best thing about signing with Roseburg Advertisements. We never let anything get in the way of our productivity."I felt guilt well up inside me so I shut his door quietly. I felt really bad
I spent the rest of the day sitting in front of my laptop and looking up Duran State Penitentiary. The articles I read about the prison sent chills down my spine. The prison is run by gang leaders and almost everyday an inmate gets killed or injured. Being the most overcrowded prison in our country, cells meant for only 22 men are often occupied by 50 men and some of them sleep on the floor and share 1 commodity. How is Yoké supposed to stay in such a place? One article I read said that new inmates are the most at risk of getting harmed by older inmates unless they join a gang.Yoké must be feeling really scared right now. He doesn't know about gangs, and a prison environment he'd probably never even imagined before. What is he thinking of me right now? Does he think I've forgotten about him? I need to see him. I need to go see him and just assure him that I'm trying all that I can to get him out of that hell hole. He needs to know that I'll stop at nothing to m
After taking several sips of his coffee dad leaned back on the couch."You know, it feels good to sit like this with you." He said."I've been getting that a lot lately, from Nathan." I smiled."Well, I just wish Alice could have been here too. But she's a whole nother person.""She just prefers something different. Something more... fun, I guess.""She takes after Leticia." He said sipping his coffee. "You take after me.""But a year ago I was like her too." I said holding the warm cup close to my body. "You didn't like it.""Yeah... but your choice of teaching wasn't as humiliating as hers. You are more sensible.""Well, I am older." I shrugged."Yeah..." Raphael sighed. "That's why I want you to work and get enough experience. Because you'll be the heiress of our companies. This is the headquar